STOCKTON - Alex Obert remembers watching the United States National water polo team take on Serbia at Pacific five years ago and it inspired him to pursue the sport more seriously.

In 2009 Obert was a high school student at Loomis-Del Oro, but he will be in the pool for the U.S. National team at 7 p.m. today as it opens a four-game Northern California series against Serbia at Chris Kjeldsen Pool. The U.S. team will feature Obert, his Pacific teammate Ben Stevenson and Lodi High product Nic Carniglia, who is headed to Cal in the fall.

The next three matches in the series are scheduled at Davis on Wednesday, Berkeley on Saturday and Stanford on Sunday. After the series, both teams begin preparations for the FINA World Super League Final on June 14-21 in Dubai.

"It's pretty special for us to not only host this prestigious event, but also have two players on the national team roster," Pacific coach James Graham said. "We hope that Stockton comes out and supports this game like it did the MPSF Tournament (in December)."

Obert has been playing with the national team since last summer and the senior-to-be at Pacific has stepped into a prominent role this year as a high-scoring center. U.S. coach Dejan Udovicic said he expects "big things from him in the future, because he can play several positions at a high level."

"Last summer felt like such a crazy whirlwind for me and this year I'm a lot more comfortable," Obert said. "I'm just more calm and ready to play at this level. I can't wait to play with the national team in that pool."

The Americans are striving to reach Serbia's level - which earned medals in 16 of 17 major international tournaments under Udovicic from 2006-12. Udovicic left Serbia to become the U.S. coach in May 2013.

Under Udovicic, Serbia won the bronze medal at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics and the U.S. captured the gold medal at the FINA Intercontinental Tournament last week in China. Obert scored two goals in a 11-7 win over Brazil in the final.

Stevenson and Carniglia aren't expected to play much during this series, but that hasn't dampened the former Flame's enthusiasm. Carniglia joined the national team for training Monday at Stanford after his new teammates returned from Shanghai.

"It's awesome and it'll be sweet putting on the U.S. colors again. And being on the senior team near home makes it more meaningful," said Carniglia, who played for the U.S. Junior team last August in a tournament in Buenos Aries, Argentina. "Everything is more intense, so you have to swim faster, pay attention more and exert more of yourself."

Carniglia said he heavily considered Pacific before choosing Cal and said Golden Bears coach Kirk Everist is a huge supporter of his international aspirations.

"Eventually getting on the national team is a big goal for me," Carniglia said. "I've learned a bunch of little stuff in two practices, and I just want to get better."